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Old 03-12-2012, 09:18 PM   #1
LittleHoov
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Intrigue front engine mount "how-to"

This information only applies to 99-02 Intrigue models with the 3.5 engine.

I replaced my front engine mount about a week ago, and by the time I was done I was wishing someone had done one previously. Wouldve saved me a lot of headache and backtracking, so I thought Id do one and maybe save someone else some trouble in the future.

This also contains information on removing the cooling fan assembly, and the starter, both useful in other projects, so someone may find it helpful in that respect.

The front mount is located about dead center of the vehicle, maybe slightly off to the passenger side. It is a few inches from the radiator, and is essentially underneath the front exhaust manifold for all location purposes.

Unfortunately I didnt take any pictures, as it didnt occur to me to do so at the time. I've tried to be as descriptive as I can, which makes it wordy, so I apologize. I did take a picture of my old mount though!


As you can see, it was trashed. Its essentially ripped in half, and since it is a hydraulic mount, the fluid was of course gone, or a great deal of it was anyway.

I can see why this mount failed, really the only time a load gets placed on it is when you're in reverse. While driving forward, the engine is pulling upward on the mount, essentially trying to pull it apart. Kind of a dumb setup if you ask me. I think that the Intrigue with the 3.5 should have 2 of the "dogbone" mounts like the rest of the W-bodies instead of just 1. It would put much less strain on this mount.


Background

I had some pretty heavy noise and vibration for several months, particularly intensified when making left turns at speed. Over the course of a few months I replaced both front wheel bearings and both CV Halfshafts and still had noise and vibration problems. Completely at a loss, I decided to go down the engine mount path, and quickly discovered my problem. Replacing this mount all but eliminated my problems. I do still have some very minor noise and vibration from time to time, but its rare, and probably related to cheap tires, and the fact the rest of my mounts probably arent in the greatest shape.

"Specialty" Tools needed

You'll need a basic array of hand tools of course. If you dont already have a set, I strongly recommend getting a set of drive-on ramps to do this project. It would be very difficult to do with the car just sitting on the ground, and having it up on jackstands could become a problem when you starting jacking up the engine, because in my experience it did lift upward on the car to some degree, and thats not good when youre on jackstands.

I have a pair that cost me around $50 at Wal-Mart, yes theyre plastic, but theyre quite strong, and should last you a lifetime if cared for properly.

The only other things that you will need that may not be terribly common are a 13mm deep socket, 15mm deep socket, and enough extensions for your ratchet to give you around 9 inches or so of reach...give or take a few inches.

You will need to remove several things before tackling the mount itself, and there is no set order really, so Ill just type them up in the order that I personally did them.

Before you get started
Find a good, level location. Life will be much easier if you use ramps as suggested. Set the parking brake once on the ramps. If you have added one, disconnect the strut tower bar (learned the hard way, nearly cost me a power steering line). Disconnect the battery. Wear safety glasses, dont be stupid, and I of course am held liable for nothing. Thanks!

Removing Torque Strut Mount and bracket

The first thing you will need to remove is the Torque Strut Mount, and its mounting bracket. Also known as the "dogbone" mount. It is on the right side of the engine. The bracket is secured to the radiator support area with 4 bolts, and then the "dogbone" extends over to the engine itself, held on each end with a bolt and nut. Remove the "dogbone" portion first, using a 15mm socket and open-end wrench to hold the nut. Then loosen and remove the 4 13mm bolts holding the mounting bracket in place. The bracket should slide off once all 4 bolts are removed...I also ordered new replacements for both of these parts as well. Might not have been necessary, but I did.

Removing airbox assembly

This part is somewhat sketchy as to whether or not you need to do it, and how far you need to go. Especially if you have a factory airbox setup, which I do not. In my case it wasnt my tubing, filter, etc that needed removed, but the PCM tray needs to be temporarily taken loose. This is sort of a prelude to the next step which is removing the cooling fans....basically it will make things easier in my opinion. I havent had a factory airbox in years, so Im sketchy, so Ill assume you can remove the top portion and tubing on your own and get to the PCM tray. Honestly if you can't, this project isnt for you and now would be a good time to stop....the PCM tray is held in place by two plastic studs on the bottom that press into rubber grommets on the vehicle frame. Pull straight up on the tray and it should come loose. It is not necessary to remove the tray entirely, really you only need to move it over, but more on that in the next step.

Removing the Cooling Fans

If youre like me, you wish this wasnt necessary. But unfortuneately it is. The fans are held in place by 3 bolts, and a sort of clip-like "thingy" at the bottom. Sorry for being so technical haha. The 3 bolts are 10mm if memory serves, one is located near the battery, the other about dead center of the top of the fan assembly, the other near, you guessed it, the PCM tray! I couldnt get access to that bolt without removing it, but you might have better luck than me....after you have removed the 3 bolts (or before it doesnt really matter) disconnect the fan wiring harness, it only has one electrical connector, and is hard to miss...after that another thing that may not be entirely necessary but certainly made life easier, was to remove the plastic pieces that hold the wiring that runs along near the top of the fans in place...There are 2 plastic "studs' the come free by pulling/prying the center section up first, then removing the lower half. After you remove those 2 studs, the plastic wiring holder should be free to move backwards and ultimately upwards, giving you more room to work...This is another good reason to have the PCM tray "floating" instead of locked in place, as this does pull on the PCM wiring and could cause problems if the tray is in place.

Now the fans are finally ready to come out! The only thing holding them in now is a sort of clip-like thingy at the bottom. It has 2 prongs that fit into the bottom of the fan assembly, and they are sort of angled in such a way that they "grab" the fan assembly as you try to lift it out. To put it nicely...its a pain...This is a good time to enlist a friend, with the ramps you should be able to crawl under the car and see the little "prongs" and find something to stick in there and push them out a bit so they dont "grab" the fans so much...all while pulling upwards on the assembly, and holding the wiring out of the way...this gave me the hardest time of anything I think. I wrestled with them for what seemed like forever, and finally decided either they were coming out or I was breaking them in the attempt (anger is not fun children)...and they came out! Probably would have been easier with an extra person.

Take a look at the spacious view underneath the hood, and wish it was like that all the time!

Removing The Starter

The starter needs to come out in order for you to have a path big enough to get the old mount out, and the new mount in place, otherwise the old mount once loosened and removed, cant be removed, and of course the new one cant be put in place. (ask me how I know)

Disconnect the battery before proceding

The starter is held in place with 2 15mm bolts, and they can be difficult to access without a long extension, or several short ones, particularly the top bolt. The bolts are also different lengths, so take note of where you removed each one, they would be difficult to confuse, but its still handy to take note. Once those two bolts are moved, you will want to slide it out, and then point the geared portion up toward the top of the engine, and the back of the starter with the 2 wires attached down towards you. Take your time and be patient here, and try not to let the starter hang from the wiring, this will in turn exercise a lot of forearm muscles you apparently havent used in quite some time...the smaller wire on the starter is removed after loosening the small nut holding it in place. Mine was an 8mm. Once removed put it some place where you wont lose it! If you do lose it, the proper replacement size is M5x.8...again ask me how I know...The larger wire is where I recommend the 13mm deep socket. You might be able to get in there with an open end, but given the space restraints, its much easier with a socket..Again put the nut somewhere you wont lose it...with both of the wires removed from the starter, it should slide right out.

Preparing the engine mount to be removed

Finally! We actually get to mess with the mount! There are 2 studs at the top, and 2 studs at the bottom of the mount. In my opinion it makes no difference as to which you remove first...The top 2 are difficult to get a socket/ratchet on, but it is sort of possible. I recommend either a traditional box-end, or quality ratcheting box-end. I say quality because my Harbor Freight ratcheting box end kept having problems. At any rate, the nuts on both the top and bottom studs are 15mm. The top ones are removed largely by feel, since you cant actually see them, or at least I sure couldnt. Be careful and patient, you certainly dont want to round those nuts off.

The bottom ones are easily accessed through holes in the frame with that 15mm deep socket I mentioned earlier. Loosen and remove all 4 nuts and place them somewhere safe.

Jacking up the engine

This is an issue where opinions differ. It causes friends to be lost, homes to be divided, etc. All I can tell you is what worked for me.

Again, if you have added a strut tower bar, remove it now.

Though some would disagree, I used the tried and true " Jack and wooden block on the oil pan" method. You could also use an engine hoist, but you're on your own if you go that route, I cant comment on that since I dont even have one.

If you elect to go with a jack, the first issue you will encounter is that since the vehicle is (hopefully) up on ramps, there is quite a distance between the ground, and the oil pan. I used a large cinder block to take up a great deal of the distance, and then placed the factory jack found in my trunk on top of it. Yes, this is an opportunity to actually find your factory jack useful, dont let it slip by! I chose that jack because a floor jack was too big to have any stability on my block, and a bottle-jack was too tall.

I placed a 2x4 block that was about the length of the oil pan on the flat portion of the pan and began cranking away on the jack. Go slowly. It may seem like you arent moving anything at first, but keep going unless you hear or see anything terrible. The tension should come off the mount fairly quickly and you should be able to start wiggling it to see that your jacking setup is working properly....basically just keep going until the top studs on the mount are able to clear the engine bracket, then you can sort of roll the mount forward to get the bottom studs out...slide the old mount down toward that big hole you just opened up by removing the starter.

Installing the new mount is basically the reverse of removal. A couple things that you should note are that the mount actually does have a slight angle to it, and it is possible to install in backwards, though the top studs wont line up if you do...another thing is that the studs on my new mount, an Anchor branded one, were slightly longer than the old studs, both top and bottom. Compare your old and new mounts quickly, and if the studs are longer you will need to jack up your engine even more to allow some extra clearance. Basically if the new mount is installed properly the bottom studs will of course go in their holes, and the top studs should visually line up with their holes.

Now you will want to lower the engine back down, this is another reason I highly recommend the factory jack, or something similar, because you can lower it slowly and without the jerkiness that hydraulic jacks sometimes have...A little trick I did once I was sure the new mount was in the proper orientation was to lift it up and put the top studs in their holes, while keeping the bottom studs in their holes as well while slowly lowering the engine...I held the mount sort of "floating" in place with one hand and lowering the jack slowly with the other hand...use caution here of course, you dont want fingers or tools or anything getting caught in the mix while lowering the engine down. Once you have lowered it a certain amount, its not necessary to hold the mount in place anymore.

After that, just reinstall everything, starting with the engine mount nuts.

Hope this helps someone in the future. Feel free to share it on other forums.

Here are the parts I purchased:

The mount itself is Anchor part #3093

The torque strut mount is Anchor part #2716, you can also buy just the bushing and refurbish your old mount, but the price difference is only a couple of dollars.

The torque strut mount bracket I purchased was DEA part # A5309, the Anchor brand is cheaper, but RockAuto had the Anchor part under a completely different section which I didnt find until typing this post, I initially thought Anchor didnt make this part. The Anchor version is part #3088, and I wish I had found it the first time around.
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2000 Oldsmobile Intrigue 3.5 DOHC V6
Mods: Fenderwell Intake, High-Flow cat, U-bend delete, 12-inch front rotors, GMPP handling kit, 20% tint, Pioneer front and rear speakers, Eclipse HU, cleared corners
1986 Jeep Cherokee 2.8 V6

Last edited by LittleHoov; 03-13-2012 at 12:22 AM.
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Old 03-12-2012, 10:37 PM   #2
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Re: Intrigue front engine mount "how-to"

LittleHoov -
Thanks for the great writeup. I'm sure it will be real useful for several repair jobs, as you said. I already printed it off to have it handy.
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Old 08-04-2013, 09:30 PM   #3
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Intrigue mounts

2001 Intrigue
Model GX
Mileage at the time of mount replacement: 295,043
Dealer replaced all the mounts.
Cost: $1,094.06

The primary cause of the rear engine mount failure was the fluid leak from the power steering high pressure hose. The fluid caused the rubber to deteriorate and collapse. Since the mounts works as a system, the failure of one mount caused the other mounts to absorb more of the vibrations. Best practice is to replace all the mounts at the same time.

The engine support fixture cost more than the total amount charge by the dealer for the whole job including parts.

W Body
Engine support fixture
SPX Kent Moore is a large producer of GM auto specialty service tools that are often named by a J-Series number in Mitchell1 on Demand, AllData and other car repair manuals. The Kent Moore Special Service Tool company is owned by the SPX Corporation, one of it's subsidiaries which auto technicians are very familiar with is OTC Tools. Automotive specialty tools made by Kent Moore are designed for automotive technicians for use in automotive maintenance, repair, diagnostics and car manufacturing. SPX Kent Moore specialty tools are used for changing parts...like wrenches, pullers, holders, tools for engine cam and crankshaft alignment and more. SPX companies provide diagnostic solutions for leading brands around the world, including Chevrolet, Nissan, LandRover, Harley-Davidson, Bobcat and others. SPX companies also serve clients in the aerospace, energy, transportation, defense, electronics and other industries.

J28467-90A Engine support adapters $142.04
J36462-A Engine support adapter leg set $298.45
J28467-B Universal engine support fixture $678.44
· J28467-1A Cross bracket assembly
· J28467-2A Radiator shelf tube
· J28467-3 Strut lower tube
· J28467-4A Front support assembly
· J28467-5A Strut tower support assemblies
· J28467-6A Hook bracket
· J28467-7A Lift hook
· J28467-9 7/16 inch x 2.0 inch quick release pin
· J28467-10 ½ inch x 2.5 inch quick release pin
· J28467-34 Hook wing nut

See enclosed .pdf file for the pictures.
Attached Files
File Type: pdf Failed Mounts.pdf (250.2 KB, 13 views)
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